Lonely hearts in UAE can buy a hug for just Dh59

A unique arm-shaped pillow has created a social media rage as it winds up on group internet buying website, with 53 people nabbing the deal within hours of it going live

By

Bindu Suresh Rai

PublishedTuesday, June 05, 2012

We’ve heard of the bizarre, but a new internet group buying deal has catapulted the concept to a whole different level with an arm-shaped pillow, complete with half a torso, that is enticing women and men with some bodily comfort in the dead of the night.

The Groupon deal simply states: “Sleep like a cooing baby with today’s deal: cuddle and snuggle up with the Hug Me Pillow….”

The description continues: “Built to give comfort and designed to serve as the perfect bedtime companion, the Hug Me Pillow features a unique shape that replicates your ex-flame or daddy’s warm presence during bed time… This dream man arm pillow is a soft and cosy body pillow that comfortably wraps around the body, providing a sense of support and comfort throughout the long, long night.”

And it comes in two colours too.

Priced at Dh59, instead of your Dh150 price tag, the 61 per cent discounted body pillow has already seen 53 purchases within hours of the deal going live, with several Twitter followers not missing this opportunity to pass forth a few cheeky comments.

Ameera Balushi tweeted: “Looks like husbands have been given the boot. I won’t be surprised if the pillow is more comforting than the real deal.”

“Hmmm. The pillow also comes in pink. Doesn’t bode well for men in Dubai in any scenario,” tweeted Roshan B.

While many are looking into the humour of such a concept, there are some who are questioning the psyche of the idea.

Speaking to Emirates 24|7, Binaifer Dastoor said: “Are humans really that starved for comfort that we have to fork over Dh59 to buy some from a stuffed pillow? If this is what we have to resort to, then maybe it’s time to take stock of your personal life and give it a comforting makeover that does not involve a fake arm and half a torso.”
A Groupon spokesperson said: “We’ve had a few people taking an extreme view to the idea of a ‘Hug Me Pillow’, but it should be taken in the manner it is meant to be: a unique product that is funny and cool.”

He said the pillow deal was initially supposed to go live on the website during the lead-up to Valentine’s Day earlier this year, targeting ‘lonely hearts’ during the day of love.

However, the deal finally launched yesterday and Groupon has already had a few visitors to their offices to check out the product up close and personal.

“We had two women and a gentleman visit our offices, and yes, men are not averse from buying it,” he stated.

“Of the two colours, the blue one is the fast mover, which is surprising, as I expected the pink pillow would have been picked up more. Guess women are buying the blue ones for themselves and some for their men too.”

Currently 350 Hug Me Pillows are on sale, and the launch only happened in the UAE after the product sold out on international Groupon sites.